Escaping the Dark
by MAD4magik
Summary: A New York shooting kills 13. Ten survivors go to jail, and one minor goes to the most isolated juvenile detention center in all of America, Camp Green Lake.
1. Summary

Indian Rain

**Summary: She was only 17 when it all happened. Even now, as she sits on that hot yellow bus, months later, the memories are still blurred. All she can grasp is small things, the sounds of the gunshots firing around her, the foul smell of blood, the cold feeling of the New York winter air, and the sirens sounding in the distance, coming closer and closer. **

**A tear streamed down her face as one memory did come back, sharp and painful.**

**"Zack." Escaped her lips softly as she remembered the scene. She had heard the shot and before her eyes, he fell, hitting the ground with sound too soft to penetrate the blanket of screams, gunshots, and sirens that wouldn't arrive in time. His body, cold and lifeless, had lain at her feet, a thick red stain in his dirty blonde. She wasn't even able to cry.**

**All their plans had crashed also been shot. They were going to go to homecoming, prom, college, and then run off and elope. But now, he was gone, and she was left with nothing but the horrid memories and empty promises. **

**Not for long though. About five minutes after his death, the police had come, and taken her and ten others away, the only ones left alive, after the shooting. The others were sent away to prison, she, being a minor, was sent to Juvi.**

**Her eyes glaze over the stretch of desert, only ending when it connects with horizon. She wanted more than anything else to have her Zack back, but as fate went, he was gone. Her thoughts drifted elsewhere and the tears drip down her face, just like the Indian Rain. **


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own none of the Holes characters or the plot. The great writer Luis Sachar does, but I would be extremely happy if he would sell them to me! **

A/N: Oh My Garsh! Thank you all for reviewing this story! I only had the summary posted and I got 9 reviews. I'm sorry for the long wait, but I was having trouble with my asthma. But I'm better now. I would really just like to say I am extremely, totally, inspired by all of you, and that's the truth. Well, here it is, the first Chapter of Indian Rain.

**Chapter I:**

**" Miss Elizabeth Azalea, heh?" The man that had introduced himself as Mr. Sir, paced behind his old tattered desk, reading her information off a clipboard. **

**" That Russian or something?" He asked, looking up from the clipboard at her. She did not look at him or respond, she didn't even hear the question over her thoughts. **

**"You listening to me?" he shouted, but she gazed still at the floor. After she didn't answer again, he surrendered and turned his attention back to her forms. "New York shooting, huh? Well, we got us a gunman, or should I say," She felt his glance burn her skin, "woman." **

**Tears, more tears. Just at the slight mention of the incident, her mind went crazy and her thoughts screamed in her head, barely being heard over the heart aching flashbacks of that day. **

**Finally, after Mr. Sir felt content that he had question her enough, he sent her off with another man, shorter and funny looking. This man, unlike Mr. Sir, welcomed her with kind words, what exactly he said she didn't hear. **

**"Well, here we are, your new home!" He said in a cheery voice, but her "home" was anything but cheery. All it was was a green tent, torn and faded by wind and sand. It reeked of a substance she was not sure she wished to discover. **

**The cheery man led her through a flap at the front of the tent, and the inside wasn't much better than the outside had been. There were nine cots lined up about two feet apart from each other, and a few stacks of boxes at the far end of the tent. **

**"This will be your cot." He pointed to a cot just like the others, closest to the boxes. "Now, if you ever need anything, just ask one of your tent buddies where Mr. Pendan-, well, just call me mom." She kept her stare away from him. Her eyes were vacant and her face showed no sign of emotion, it was just pale. **

**Her face had once played host to a beautiful smile that brightened her appearance. Zack loved her smile. He loved everything about her. He loved her black hair, flowing straight down to her waist, not a single curl in it. He loved her thin figure, perfect for holding her close to him. Over everything else, though, he loved her eyes. They were gray, but he never called them that. He always said they were silver, magical, sparkly silver. That's why she loved him so much.**

**Mr. Mom walked out of the tent, looking nervously back at her, but once she knew he was gone, she lay down on her cot, and cried herself to sleep, the only place she could be with Zack. **

**A/N: Okay, so I know this Chapter was really short, but I'm still struggling. I need help! Anyone who helps me will get their name put on the next chapter as co-author. I just don't know how she should meet all the D-tent guys. Please Help! **


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Holes characters or plots, Louis Sachar does. I do own the character Elizabeth Azalea.

**Co-writer and Top reviewer: LeMoNsOuR!**

**A/N: I want to thank all you reviewers so much. You have all really inspired me to keep going with this story. Thank you so much LeMoNsOuR for your great ideas. You rock! And not that oldies kind of rock, but the head banging, speaker thumping, guitar smashing kind of rock we all love, right? Thank you!**

**Chapter 2:**

_"Zack!" she cried out to the sky, wondering where he'd gone. The cold air burned against her face like toxic as she ran the streets, searching for him. _

_She turned this corner and ran down this alley, but she still could not find the one she needed. Her eyes squinted with much difficulty through the fog; she gagged against the smell of garbage and sewage that reached her nose. She wanted to turn back, but she forced herself to keep going. He had to be out there, and she had to find him. _

_Another alley, another vacant street, until finally, she found him. His back was all she could see, and she could see others with him. She wanted to scream to him, she wanted to embrace him, but thought better of it. _

_She crept slyly over to an opening between some big tin trashcans. That's all that was there, but what could you expect from the city dump. Even though she was close, the words that were spoken were still muffled. She didn't know what to think of this whole awkward situation, until it happened._

_In the blink of an eye, it rang out through the night. BANG! The gunshot was so powerful it knocked her back. She quickly rolled away from the tumbling cans and stood up, looking everywhere. _

_BANG! Another gunshot. Time was running out. She had to find Zack so they could run, so they could run from everything that had tormented and mocked them in this city. _

_She dodged another garbage can, and found him once more. _

_"Zack!" she cried, tears of joy gathering at her eyes. He turned his head to see her, and she froze. The whole moment seemed still. He looked at her, with this face, a face of guilt, sorrow, and pain. He mouthed the words so clearly. _

_"I'm sorry." _

_BANG!_

**Eliza awoke, panting for air, cold sweat dripping down her forehead. She wasn't sure how long she had slept or what time it was, but that didn't matter. Her bones were shaking uncontrollably as she sat up on her cot, still in the same clothes she'd worn here. The tears ran down her face without any thought or fight. **

" It wasn't my fault." She whispered the words carefully to herself, but they did not convince her. They were mere words, no comfort to her shattered soul. She had screamed, she had made him turn, but he apologized. She couldn't understand why, but it didn't matter.

**Her eyes stare blankly out the "door" at the front of the tent. She was cold, shivering freezing cold, yet she was in the desert. Her thoughts wandered once more to Zack, and the tears came down harder. **

**"Excuse, Miss Azalea?" came that nasally voice. She seen the man standing there, in all his funny looking, too much sun screen glory, but she paid him no mind. That is, until he didn't give up. **

**"Miss Azalea? Its alright to cry." He went on, like he was some whacked out shrink getting paid big bucks to tell her she's okay. **

**"You may have done some bad things, but that does not make you a bad kid." **

**Those words hit her like stone. **

**"It wasn't my fault." She muttered to herself. **

**"That's right, your getting the hang of it!" Mom said, then he stood up straight again. "How would you like to see the camp, hmm?" **

**She knew he would not leave until she obeyed, so she rose from her cot and followed him out of the tent. **

**From as far as she could tell, that was nothing that exciting about this camp. It was desert, more and more desert. Even the sand seemed too bored to live. The other tents A,B,C, and E, were identical clones of D-tent. Off in the distance, Eliza could just barely see figures moving in an awkward dance. **

**" This is the Mess Hall." Mom was saying lots of stuff, but Eliza could not take her eyes off of the strange dancers. They were almost mesmerizing. **

**Mom led her around the whole camp, and showed her the shower behind the warden's house that she would use. He also issued to her an orange jump suit, a plastic bottle canteen, and some tall worn almost army boots (a/n I wish I had those wicked sweet boots). She change behind the warden's house, then surrendered her old clothes to Mom. **

**"Ah, looks as if some of the boys are coming back." Mom said, smiling at the large dark blob that was coming over the horizon. "Now, they might be here for a number of reasons, theft, burning, trespassing, shooting," **

_It wasn't my fault._

**"But that doesn't mean they ain't great boys." **

**"It wasn't my fault." She muttered, feeling the blood pumping fast again through her veins. **

**"Did you say something?" mom asked. He placed a hand on her shoulder as she started to sway. **

**"It wasn't my fault." She said a little louder than before. **

**"Yes, we all know you're a great k-"**

**"IT WASN'T MY FAULT!" she screamed and ran from Mom. The wind and sand whipped her face as she ran toward the blob of figures. She ran as fast as she could, trying to run away from everything, this stupid camp, New York, Mom, and the dreams. She ran and ran until she felt herself stop abruptly.**

**She had hit something with such a force that it made her head spin. After a few seconds, she regained feeling, and realized there was something, or someone, holding her. She looked up, tears blurring her vision, to see him. **

**She knew it was he. He had the same dirty blonde hair, the same dark green eyes, and the same soft face. He wasn't gone, he was back. **

**"I'm sorry!" she cried and hugged him tight. She never wanted to let him go, not again. "I'm sorry!" she sobbed into his chest, shaking all over again. She heard his heartbeat, she felt him breathing, and still she embraced him. **

**Then she heard Mom's voice, panting and out of breath, calling to her. **

**"Miss Azalea? Miss Azalea?" he was trying to pull her away, but she didn't want to depart with him again. He wasn't dead. He was alive. **

**Finally Mom succeeded in pulling her away. Time seem to freeze again as she stumbled backwards, only to look up and see she had not been hugging Zack. He wasn't there, he couldn't forgive her, and he was gone. **

**She fell to the hot, dry ground, the world spinning around her, wishing so much she could just die right there. **

**A/N: so, how was this chapter? If you liked it, thank LeMoNsOuR for all her help in the completion of this chapter. You can probably guess whom she thought was Zack, and I don't know about any romances yet, but right now, Eliza isn't exactly mentally stable enough to be in a relationship. If any of you are wondering, Eliza is not a character designed after me, I have not suffered that tragic of a loss, or been involved in a New York shooting, since I don't live in New York anyway. Please read and review and there should be more chapters coming. Toodles!**


	4. Chapter 3

Author's Note: All right, I know you all have wanted this chapter, or at least, LeMoNsOuR said she did, so here it is, chapter 3. I hope you like it; it's taken me along time.

Disclaimer: I own only Elizabeth Azalea and Zack; all other characters of this story are held to ownership of Louis Sachar! GO LOUIS!

Chapter 3:

Elizabeth slipped into a deep awkward state of mind. It was almost like a dream, but looked more real. She was alone, and everything around her was black. She strained her eyes for any speck of light to help her escape this place. She had never been one to cringe in the dark, but now, she was afraid, afraid from being alone and surrounded by darkness, thick darkness. She tried to run, but she was suffocated by the black that encircled her. The invisible barrier muffled her scream and her cries could not escape even her throat. The tears were even choked by the dark fog. She knew very well if she was not out of here soon, it would engulf her, and she would become the darkness.

Suddenly there was a light above, and some strange forced pulled her away from her struggle and brought her to freedom again. She looked up, expecting to see that her savior was Zack, as was common in her dreams, but instead, she seen another. His hair was messy, jetting out in random directions, his eyes, an unusually bright green, looked into her pale silver eyes. He was tall and smiling handsomely at her. She knew in an instant who it was, it was the boy who she had mistaken for Zack, her Zack. He was an imposter, and she felt supreme hatred toward him for it.

She stood, ignoring the hand he reached toward her, and ran from him. She ran as fast as she could, until the ground beneath her disappeared, and she dropped fast into oblivion.

Her scream echoed through her own head as she awoke, writhing and soaking with sweat. Her breath came fast and short and she struggled to quickly untangle herself from her blanket. She screamed again, waking all of her tent mates. There were groans at first, and then panic hit all of the boys. Elizabeth still struggled, even as Squid and Zigzag tried desperately to hold her down. They had wrestled the blanket from her, but she kept screaming, fighting against them.

Zero and Magnet came running back into the tent followed closely by Dr. Pendanski, Mr. Sir, and the warden.

"Hold her still!" Dr. Pendanski shouted as he hastily tried fiddled with a tranquilizer gun. Zigzag and Squid tried, Caveman and Armpit even held down her legs, but she refused to remain still. Her body struggled against them, but they finally won when X-ray and Magnet helped hold her steady. Pendanski quickly went to the head of her cot, and reaching around Zigzag, pulled the trigger, releasing the tranquilizer into her upper arm. In a matter of seconds she fell motionless, lying on her cot, twitching. The boys stepped back away from her cautiously, not wanting to rouse her again.

Pendanski and Mr. Sir turned to look at the warden, who stood at the foot of Elizabeth's bed. She looked at the two of them, and then spoke softly.

"We'll talk about this in the morning." And with that, she turned and left the tent. Mr. Sir followed after her, and Pendanski looked at the boys.

"Well, good night boys, get some sleep." He smiled awkwardly, and with one last glance at Elizabeth, left the tent, walking quickly after Mr. Sir and the Warden.

The boys all went back to their individual cots and sat awhile, then Zigzag broke the hovering silence.

"What do ya thinks wrong with her?" he asked slowly, then looked to each one of them for some answer.

"Don't know." X-ray spoke up when no one responded. "But whatever it maybe, it can't keep happening, or else they'll send her away."

"Well, that wouldn't be so bad." Caveman said, and then added, "I mean, she'd get to leave here, right?" X-ray shook his head.  
"True, but she wouldn't be going somewhere pleasant."

"Where do you think they'd send her?" Magnet asked, looking to X-ray for the answer.

"Probably the loony bin." Armpit answered instead, and many nodded.

"But I bet you that's air-conditioned." Squid commented, and they all laughed, all except for Zigzag, who wasn't paying attention. He was staring over at Elizabeth, wondering what was really wrong with her.

The next morning came too quickly for D-tent, as because of the night's events, many had went without sleep. Yet, drowsy and tired, they dragged themselves out of bed and were surprised to see Elizabeth cot vacant. Her blanket was tangled as it had been the previous night, but she was nowhere in sight.

The seven boys exited their tent to find Elizabeth sitting on the wooden steps. Her knees were pulled up to her chest and she hugged them tight as she stared off into the distance. None of the boys made any notice that she was there, but they seen her. Her eyes stayed on the horizon, until Zigzag walked by. Her focused jumped immediately to him, and for a split second, she stared. She showed no emotion, just stared. Then, in an instant, she looked away, back to the horizon she longed for.

What was it about him that made him so…intriguing? How had he been in her dreams? How was it that it was he that had saved her from darkness? Why did she fall when she refused his hand?

The question would not stop forming in Elizabeth's mind as she followed her tent mates to the "library". She denied the "breakfast" they offered her, for she only had one hunger, and that was answers. Answers to the questions that ceased to be silent, and an answer for why the boys of D-tent looked at her so strangely. Yes, she was a girl, and by the looks of it, there weren't any girls here. But that wasn't how they looked at her. There was fear in their eyes, caution, and concern.

By high noon that day, Elizabeth was exhausted from digging. When the water truck came with their lunch, she couldn't pull herself up from her hole. Her arms were weak from hoisting the shovel full of dirt up and out of the hole and her legs were tired from standing on the uneven ground all day.

The boys passed by her, some glancing at her and some ignoring her, but one stopped. She only noticed him because of the shadow he cast over her. She looked up to see that boy, the one who haunted her dream, the boy she had mistaken for Zack. Her Zack.

He squatted down by her hole and held out his hand for her.

Just like in the dream.

She stared, eyes wide, looking at his hand. She looked up to his face, expecting to see some grimace or smirk, being the evil exorcist or whatever he was, but instead, he smiled. His smile was warm and kind, not too happy, but a smile nonetheless. After she did nothing, he whispered to her in a deep, whole voice.

"I'll be back."

His voice was crisp, yet soft, like his smile. He stood straight and walked toward the truck, which Mr. Sir stood by, impatiently waited for all of them to get their food so he could leave.

Elizabeth shook herself, trying to relieve her mind of the thousand new question and thoughts that now swam through it. When she failed though, she decided to dig again, forcing her shovel into the dirt as hard as she could, and scooping the dirt back out of her hole. She began to feel better, her mind easing, when she heard the voice.

"Here."

That's all he said, and by the time she turned around, the boy was gone, and all that was there, was his lunch. She looked up out of her hole to see him walking away, digging in his hole again, with nothing to eat. She clutched her hand to her head as it pounded with more thoughts and question, screaming unbearably loud.

For a while she ignored the food, but finally, when she started to feel faint from heat and lack of nutrients, she dropped her shovel, and grabbed the sandwich. A few holes away, Zigzag looked up from his work, and smiled.


	5. Chapter 4

A/n: I am now performing a miracle in putting this chapter almost right after the last one. Thank you everyone who reviewed my story, and also thanks to everyone who has given me their actual thoughts and views. We all know how it is when all the reviews say are "Good" or "Bad", not that those reviews are pointless, its nice for stuff that's nice and simple, and I understand your busy, but sometimes its nice to get reviews with critical comments. But thanks to everyone!

ArwenEvenStar83 : CONGRATULATIONS! you were my first reveiwer on this chapter! thank you so much!

Jennifer Duesbee: thanks, but you didn't see anything wrong with it? nothing that i could improve on? no ideas or questions? thanks for being so nice though, i didn't know my chapters were "amazing".

**LeMoNsOuR:** **my #1 reveiwer and co-author! i used your idea again in this chapter, and i am really glad you liked "the darkness". i thought that would confuse people, but i know your smarter than that! thanks so much! i read more of your story, up to chapter 24, so i got to reveiw now, i just kind of read and decided i would make one big reveiw when i could no longer contain my excite to tell you what i thought, so after i put this chapter up, i'll go reveiw your story!**

Grey: wow! that's a mysterious name! i'm glad you think its realistic, that's what i'm trying for, but i hope it still has that hint of fantasy, and you might understand more when you read the dream sequence in this chapter! thanks again!

Here's Chapter 4, and I know you'll want more!

Chapter 4:

Two weeks. Elizabeth had barely survived, but she made it through two weeks in this hell on Earth. In those two weeks, she studies that boy, almost stalking him. She didn't care what everyone else thought about her, she didn't notice their whispers as she stared over at him, watching his expression, looking at him as he drank gulps of water in the hot sun. Her reasons were simple; he scared her. No, he terrified her. Was he really haunting her dreams? Was _he _stalking her? Was her dream really some act of fate? Or coincidence?

She spent her spare time in the Wreck Room, sitting in the corner, and watching him from all the way across the room. The nightmare kept replaying itself, like some kind of broken record, but now, she looked forward to eat. She had a secret yearning to fall asleep and encounter this boy in her dreams, a craving for more. The dream no longer sent her into a spastic attack, but when she did wake up, she would be shaking, sweat dripping down her forehead like rain.

Two weeks, and at the night that marked two weeks of survival, Elizabeth finally got her wish for answers.

She had fallen asleep early, and as she drifted into unconsciousness, she expected to find herself in darkness, but instead, she stood in an alley, or better yet, the alley she had been in only weeks ago. She ran along, as she had done before, but this time, she wasn't looking for Zack. She had no desire to find him, she did not want to see him dead again. She was, instead, looking for someone else.

"RICKY!" she cried. Who was Ricky? What did he have to do with anything? She wanted to find the imposter, not Ricky.

"RICKY!" she screamed, turning a corner with ferocious speed. She ran as fast as she could, just as she had done for Zack. Her heart was pounding hard in her ears and her mind was spinning.

"Ricky!" she cried once more, her voice dying away. Finally, she stopped, slamming herself against a nearby brick wall. Elizabeth crumbled to the ground, sobbing hard into her hands. "Ricky." She sobbed, crying hard. Hurrying footsteps were coming, and she looked up. There were no people, but before her stood a cloud. The cloud was thick, black, and heavy. It was the darkness, coming after her again. She jumped up from her crumbled state, but instead of running away from the cloud, like her instinct told her to, she began to walk toward it. Slowly and carefully she walked toward the fog, preparing to give in to it. Something told her she would be happy, if she just stepped into the cloud, all her troubles would disappear. It seemed that the cloud was telling her this, not in words, but more of feeling. If she gave up to the darkness, she would see her true love again. She would be with Zack.

Then she stopped. She froze. At the mention of Zack's name, her body stopped, only feet from the cloud. She told herself to go, just a few more steps, but she stopped. Her legs refused to push forward, but began to proceed back to the wall. She never did actually hit the wall though, she just kept going back. The alley disappeared, but the darkness grew, growing stronger and stronger with each doubt that past her mind. Questions. More and more questions went in and out of her mind, none of them answered, but one question turned her to ice again.

_Did you really love Zack? _

Tears filled her eyes again. She moved her mouth, trying as hard as she could to scream, "Yes!" but she couldn't. Something stopped her. She tried everything, but she couldn't say it. She wouldn't allow herself to say she loved him. But the voice kept taunting her.

_You didn't love him! _

She started to sob, trying again to scream out her love for him, but it didn't come.

_He died because of you and you didn't even love him. _

"It wasn't my fault!" was all she could say. She couldn't say she loved him.

_Yes! And now, you finally hear the truth! It was your fault, and you did not love him! _

"STOP!" she screamed, and ran from the cloud, trying to run from the voice inside her head.

_It was your fault!_

_It was your fault!_

_IT WAS YOUR FAULT!_

An ear-splitting scream escaped Elizabeth, and just as the darkness was about to engulf her, she felt that familiar pull, and she found herself, yet again, with that boy. He had saved her again. The tears fell from eyes, soaking her cheeks and leaving a small puddle on the ground. They were back in the alley, but this time, she didn't run. He reached out his hand, and she took it, and hugged him tight, sobbing into his chest, soaking him also. The two of them began to fade away slowly, and finally, drenched in sweat and tears, Elizabeth awoke, hugging onto herself for comfort. She did not sit up, she did not move, she just laid their and cried. Hours went by before finally, the trumpet call came on to wake them up.

That day she kept away from the boy. She did not look at him, and ignored his presence, but as hard as she tried to forget he existed, she knew he was there, and she felt like he was watching her.

The whole day of digging went by, and even when she was done digging, she sat in her hole, sobbing quietly to herself. She was waiting, making sure they were all gone before she went back. Her knees were bent up to her chest and she hugged them tight. She felt it brought comfort to her to at least hug something.

Finally, when the sky started to darken, she pulled herself up and out of the hole. She walked slowly back to camp, dragging her canteen behind her, not even bothering to wipe her eyes.

She walked straight into D-tent without even realizing where she was going. They were all in there, and they watched her as she dropped her canteen onto the floor beside her bed, and then slowly sat on her cot. Her sobs were barely heard over the talking and laughing of the boys. But, when the sky was finally dark outside, she heard the tent flap open and someone enter.

"Ricky, you have to stop leaving your canteen in the Wreck Room."

Elizabeth, shaking, turned slowly to see Pendanski handing a canteen to the boy. The imposter. The imposter he called "Ricky".

"You." She muttered. No one really heard her, but Caveman, whose cot was closest to hers, looked curiously at her.

"Hey you guys, I think she wants to say something." He said loud enough for everyone to hear. Pendanski stop, in the middle of his lecture of responsibility, and turned to Elizabeth.

"What can we help you with, Elizabeth?" he said calmly, but she glared hard at "Ricky".

"You." Her breath was coming sharply as her voice rose.

"What about Ricky?" Pendanski asked.

Elizabeth stood, shaking from head to toe, and started walking toward him.

"What fun do you see in driving people insane?" she said harshly to him. "What enjoyment do you get in killing people slowly? Why won't you LEAVE ME ALONE?" she screamed, tears falling again. He looked confused, but she seen through it.

"YOU'RE AN IMPOSTER! STOP HAUNTING ME! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Pendanski tried to reason with her.

"Elizabeth, Ricky doesn't know what your talking a-"

"SHUT UP!" she shot a sharp glare at Pendanski, and then turned back to Ricky.

"All I want," she whispered to him, glaring hard into his green eyes, "is to see Zack, my Zack. I DO LOVE HIM! IT WASN'T MY FAULT! WHY CAN'T YOU LET IT HAVE ME? WHY WON'T YOU LET ME SEE HIM AGAIN?" Ricky was backing away from her as she pursued him. He had gotten up from his cot, and was backing away to the wall.

"Look, I don't know-"

"YES YOU DO!" she screamed, cutting him off. Then her face went blank, and she dropped to the ground, shaking, clinging to her knees, crying. Pendanski helped her over to her cot, and once she was laid down under her blanket, he looked to the others.

"Boys, I am asking you to please put up with this for now. She not completely…well…she's a bit…"

"Whacko!" Squid said, and Pendanski shook his head.

"Special. She's been through some hard times, what with the shooting and all." He paused, and looked regretfully for saying that. "Try to get to sleep. Lights out." And as he left, the tent went pitch black, and they had no other choice but to sleep. The last one awake was laying on their cot, smiling viciously to them self as they planned out their devious plot.

a.n: okay, I really hope you liked this chapter. Elizabeth obviously has problem, but if your confused about anything, please don't fret to ask, I love answering question. But some questions I can't answer, because it will be revealed in later chapters. The next chapter should also be coming soon, because I am already writing it and the ideas are just flooding in. thanks again, happy New Year! thanks again! i just can't say thank you enough.

Next Chapter: A devious plot may cause one less camper, unless that camper can stop it.


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: well, I have some comments, but not many.

Jennifer Duesbee: Thank you for following the story even though you think that people who write about Holes are freaks! Just kidding, but I do not obsess over Holes, I write about it because it has a plot that can be stretched and taken to various levels of both interest and comedy. I have now changed my genres to Drama/Angst because of the fact that, yes, there is no romance what so ever at the moment, so if a romance does sprout later on, well, then there will be a romance and everyone will just have to deal with that fact that there's a little romance but its not one of my genres. Everyone reading this, do not think Jennifer is a Holes hater, she just loves Harry Potter, so if you are like her and like Harry Potter too, go read her fanfics, their full of action, romance, ferrets, and most importantly…HARRY! GO NOW, or after you read mine!

LeMoNsOuR: thank you so much for your kind reviews, and the kind shout outs I have read from you in your AWESOME STORY! Everyone reading this must, must, must go and read HIDDEN by LeMoNsOuR, because it is an amazingly cool and hilarious story. READ IT OR ELSE! Thank you again LeMoNsOuR! Your stories inspire me to write more and more because some day I hope to maybe write 20 or 30 chapters like you have done. My whole goal for this New Year is to finish one story, whether it is FanFic or original, I want to finish ONE! You have given me the inspiration and the supportive comments that have vigorously helped me along the way, if it wasn't for you, I don't think I would have gotten past chapter 1, which I usually don't. But you, along with many of my friends, have driven me toward writing, and having given me both critical and praising comments. Thank you very much LeMoNsOuR, and if you can't tell, I'm very emotional today.

Fangirl: thank you for your critical review. Yes, I know that was very predictable, but it was supposed to be. I appreciate your critiquing, and thank you for being nice to me, since you said you're usually meaner. I feel special.

Okay, finally on to the story! GO!

Chapter 5 

The world seemed to stop revolving as Elizabeth slunk quietly off her cot and even more carefully out of her tent. She walked slowly toward the kitchens, her breath steady, yet her hands shaking. Her eyes looked past the kitchen, and her mind began to wonder. But there was no turning back, it had to be done.

The back door was locked, but that wouldn't stop her. She was on a mission, and her mind was determined to finish it. Her heart was not in this, but ever since the shooting, her heart was drowned away by the commands of her mind.

With all the strength she could muster, she began to rip away the screening of the kitchen door. The staples fell onto the dry dirt, making no noise. She finally made a gap just big enough for her to slip through, but once she was inside, her feet started to become cold. She thought it wasn't worth it. She wasn't sure this would solve anything. But despite her protests, her feet continued to move to the cupboards, and her hands opened each and every one until they grasped their treasure; a sharp, large cutting knife, carelessly left in an unlocked door.

A smile slid across her face and her eyes became flooded with an insane glint. She laughed quietly to herself, as she wrapped the knife with a towel from the kitchen and slipped it safely into her pocket, then continued to retreat back to her tent.

She lay down this time, smirking manically, looking at the knife's hiding place, between two of the wood boxes close to her cot, and fell into a deep sleep for the first time in weeks.

The next morning, cooks and counselors were confused at what had happened in the kitchen, but the first thing they saw, were the cupboards wide open, and a knife missing. They searched every tent and camper, but found nothing. Their minds eventually assumed that an animal of some kind had broken into the kitchens, and the knife was just lost.

Digging was quiet. The campers did not seem so eased by the disappearance of a kitchen knife. They knew there had been no animal break-in, one of the campers had it, but no one was confessing.

The morning slowly morphed into the scorching afternoon. The sun was high above them, burning down on their necks, threatening to melt their skin. Mr. Pendanski drove the lunch truck that day, but there was no smile on his face. Even he was not convinced that the knife was lost. He looked down suspiciously at all of the campers, and when Magnet swept by Pendanski, he practically sniffed him, like trying to grasp a sent of the kitchens.

"I think they've all gone psycho man." Magnet muttered just loud enough for the rest of D-tent to hear. "I didn't steal no knife. What would I do with the thing anyway?"

"I know what you mean, dawg." X-ray commented softly, and then nodded his head toward Pendanski, he added, "Their just all paranoid."

The rest of the guys nodded, but Elizabeth paid no attention. She acted like she hadn't even heard them. She thought to herself, and then smiled manically as she shoveled more and more dirt out of her hole.

"You alright Elizabeth?" Zigzag asked, looking concerned at the newest camper. As usual, she ignored his commented, and kept on digging, but the smile that had so recently spread across her face seemed to instantly change to a burning glare.

Digging took almost all day for Elizabeth. She did it on purpose. Yes, she wasn't nearly the fastest digger, but that didn't matter to her. She took her time, not wanting to rush and be around the rest of the campers, especially him.

Eventually, she measured her hole to be five foot deep and five foot wide. Climbing briskly out of her hole, she walked dreamingly back to camp, her shovel dragging on the ground behind her. Her mind started to wander again. Would they find it? Could they really find out what she was planning? They'd never stop her, even if they knew.

But another voice seemed to speak out. A tiny voice, small and barely heard. It said she couldn't do this. It wasn't right. If she followed through with this plan, she would not see Zack. This plan of hers would not bring Zack back to her. Impossible was the only word for what she wanted. But the other voice was stronger.

She didn't realize she had already walked into the tent, and she didn't know how her legs automatically carried her to her cot, but there she sat, her foot absentmindedly tracing the place where it was hidden. They would never have thought to look under the floorboards, now would they?

Before she snapped out of her trance, the rest of D-tent walked in from dinner. They were talking and laughing, but everything got silent when they seen Elizabeth sitting there. They thought they heard her talking to herself, but when they listened harder, she was laughing. Quietly she sat there laughing to herself, her shoulders shaking up and down with each chuckle.

The boys exchanged confused looks, and then went off to their separate cots. Zigzag, however, walked over to Elizabeth. He knew she didn't respond, but something inside him just made him feel like he should keep trying. So, he just strolled over and sat next to her. She did not look up, but kept on giggling to her own private joke.

"What's so funny Elizabeth?" he asked.

No answer.

"Are you alright?" he tried again.

No answer.

"Elizabeth, will you please say something." He practically begged, and without knowing what he was doing, he reached out and grabbed her hand.

She froze.

Her head turned slowly, and her eyes stared into his. Her eyes were full, and bright silver, but in a fraction of a second, they turned empty. Her stare seemed to narrow, and her hand even grew cold.

"Its not my fault." She whispered, her voice low and dark.

"What are you talking ab-"

"ITS NOT MY FAULT!" she shouted, and with one swift movement, she kicked up the floorboard, reached for the knife, and dived at him.

Zigzag fell back off her cot and onto the floor. He moved his body this way and that, narrowly avoiding the knife she was jabbing at him. The rest of the guys ran over and pulled her off of him, but as hard as they tried, she wouldn't let the knife go. She kicked and screamed, and once she had successfully injured Caveman and Magnet, they let her go.

But she did not try to go for Zigzag again, instead, she backed away. She backed up all the way to the canvas wall, and then looked at the knife.

"It's not my fault." She said, talking to the knife. "Its…not…my…fault." Her breathing was heavy and uneven. Her eyes gleamed insanely as she stared at the knife. Using the index finger of the hand that was not holding the knife, she caressed the blade, and barely winced as it sliced through her finger. The blood dripped down her arm, leaving a trail of red. Tears fell from her eyes, yet she did not sob.

"I love you Zack." She whispered. She lifted her free, bleeding hand to her face and wiped the tears from her cheeks, leaving blotches of red on her face like war paint.

"Elizabeth?" Caveman asked, looking wearingly at her as she stood, looking in awe at the knife she held.

She looked up at the boys, her tears catching the blood and falling. It looked as if she were crying tears of blood. There was a smile, a weak smile on her face.

"I'm going to be with Zack."

It finally registered in the minds of the boys. She hadn't planned to kill Zigzag, the victim of this plot was she.

"Elizabeth, you can't!" Zigzag shouted, at last standing up from the ground.

"But I have to." She said, her voice beginning to shake. She swallowed hard, the tears were so abundant now that they were starting to clean away the blood. "I love him."

"THIS WON'T BRING YOU TO HIM!" Zigzag shouted, he didn't even know who this Zack was, but he knew that he wasn't worth dying for.

"Yea, you'll see him once you get out of here, right?" Squid said, then by the look on Elizabeth's face, he regretted speaking at all.

"This is the only way," she paused, gulping again, "to see him again."

"What, is he dead or something?" Squid laughed. Laughed. He laughed.

"SHUT UP!" Elizabeth screamed, she started to shake slightly, fighting off her sobs. "IT'S NOT MY FAULT!" And with that, she raised the knife, and thrust it hard into her forearm.

The boys all knew her scream would echo in their heads for as long as they lived. Time seemed to stop as Elizabeth sank to the floor. Without being told, Zero and Caveman ran, crying as loud as they could for help. Zigzag rushed forward, followed by Squid and Armpit. They did not touch her, but Zigzag was trying to speak with her.

"Elizabeth, you need to stay with me." He said sternly, trying to look into her eyes. Her only response was to scream as she pulled the knife hard out of her arm. Pendanski, Mr. Sir, the Warden, and about all the other counselors ran one by one into the tent, closely persuaded by Zero and Caveman. The blood covered her orange jumpsuit, dying the dry material a sickly dark red.

Zigzag ripped off his shirt and rapped it around her wound, putting pressure on the bleeding cut. She was too weak now too fight, and even to speak, but he kept on trying to talk to her.

"ELIZABETH! YOU WILL MAKE IT! JUST DON'T GIVE IN! IT'S NOT WORTH IT!" He shouted, knowing she couldn't give up. She was so young, and yet her life was more troubled than anyone's he'd known. He did not know what had happened in her life, but this was not the answer for anything.

"CALL 9-1-1! GET A CHOPPER IN HERE! HURRY!" The Warden yelled to Mr. Sir. He ran awkwardly from the tent toward the Warden's Cabin.

"Elizabeth?" Zigzag looked at her. Her head had fallen into her chest, and he couldn't tell if she was breathing. Her skin was white as paper, but she couldn't give up. Pendanski sat on the other side of her limp body, his fingers trying to find a pulse.

"GOT IT!" He shouted. "Its weak. That chopper better hurry."

Zigzag pressed harder on the bloody shirt.

"HELP IS COMING ELIZABETH!" He shouted. Pendanski lifted up her head and opened one of her eyes.

"She's passed out." He declared, gently putting her head back down. Zigzag found his own breath going short. Seconds seemed to pass like days as they waited for the sound of the helicopter. The other campers were now gathered outside their tent, trying to look in and see what was going on. Their voices seemed so unimportant, Zigzag almost couldn't hear them. All he heard was his own heart pounding hard in his ears. Pendanski kept his fingers around her wrist, monitoring her pulse as best he could.

After what seemed like years, the blades of the emergency helicopter landing outside, drowning out the voices of the campers. Two men and a woman in gray jumpsuits ran in, the men carrying a stretcher and the woman lugging a bulky medicine bag.

They ran straight over to her and practically shoved Pendanski and Zigzag out of the way. Within minutes they had stuck an IV in her and lifted her up onto the stretcher. The men took her immediately out of the tent and toward the still running helicopter. The woman motioned for the Warden to come with her, and after they jumped into the chopper, it rose into the air and was off. Just like that, she was gone, and her fate was no longer in his hands.

Pendanski and Mr. Sir didn't waste anytime herding the boys back into their tents. Zigzag laid down, his stomach uneasy. Would he ever know if she was okay? What if she wasn't? He hadn't even known her that long, but he knew he would not sleep that not. How could he, when Elizabeth was miles away, struggling between life and death, without him.

Author's Note: Well, was that what you predicted to happen? Her main reason for getting the knife was suicide, not killing Zigzag, that was just because he touched her. Just a reminder to everyone, this character is not modeled after me, though I have been rushed to the hospital by ambulance, it was because of asthma, not suicide. I do not want to kill myself and I never have and never will.

I hope you all loved this chapter. It was very intense to even write this, I hope reading it gives you the same feeling. I would also really appreciate what you thought, Fangirl. So, even if you're not Fangirl, review and tell me what you thought. All comments are welcomed and appreciated. Thanks so much for reading.

Next Chapter: How will Zigzag handle life without knowing about Elizabeth's condition?

PS: next chapter may not be too exciting, but the action should pick back up soon.


	7. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Holes, and if I did, it would be nowhere as amazing as Louis Sachar's is.

Author's Note: Okay, so I haven't posted a chapter in forever, and all of you who like this story probably hate me, but please bear with this, I've had a lot of mental protest of the plot of this story. I shall not waste thine precious time buy rambling on and on with my unnecessary opinions, so, I present to you, Chapter 6!

Chapter 6 

Not many campers slept the rest of the night. When the recorded trumpet sounded, they all rose slowly, eyes blood shot from stress and exhaustion.

The counselors seemed to act as though nothing had happened. They yelled just as much, they complained even more, and nothing satisfied them. Mr. Sir was just as grumpy, and Dr. Pendanski was just as lame. All seemed normal at Camp Green Lake to the naked eye, but the campers knew better, especially D-tent.

They all gathered around the "library" to collect their shovels. Zigzag, who had slipped to the end of the line, grabbed his shovel and realized there was an extra. For a while, he stood there, waiting for the small, black-haired figure to walk past him quietly, but she didn't come. He turned around, and seen he was the only one in line. Mr. Sir shut the doors and the snap of the lock brought Zigzag back.

All air in the atmosphere seemed to burn and disappear under the blazing sun. None of the D-tent boys said anything to each other, but dug slowly, savoring each shovel of dirt they parted from the ground. Even Zero took his sweet time. None of them wanted to return to their blood stained tent. No one wanted to confront their fellow tent-mates. Their only choice was to let the hours crawl by them, to let time turn circles around their minds.

Zigzag tried to dig even slower than the rest. His thoughts kept running from the present and back to the past, back the previous night. Her scream played over and over, as he watched again, helplessly pleading with her to stay alive. Every time he seen her blood splattered body, his heart dropped further and further. She was now miles away, lying in some hospital bed, hopefully alive.

Through out the day, the scene played through his head, and some new, soft voice whispered grim predictions.

" She won't make it." The voice whispered. "She's probably already dead."

Each time the voice came back; it was louder, slowly growing to almost a roar. He thought the tears he had been holding prisoner would finally escape, but then he suddenly heard someone behind him start sobbing.

He, along with the other campers, turned to see Caveman curled into a ball at the bottom of his hole, shaking as he cried into his knees, his shovel lay abandoned on the ground. One by one, they turned away from him, leaving him to his own depression. Shortly, Pendanski came with the water truck and tried to usher Caveman from his hole. Caveman, conscious of being discovered, shrugged Pendanski away, wiped his face, and went back to digging. Pendanski looked cautiously from camper to camper, then filled their canteens, and drove off.

The first one to finish his hole was, surprisingly, Caveman. The second he was done, he jumped out of his hole, and walked away, not before he hawked a wad of spit into his hole. D-tenters finished one by one, until Zigzag was the only one left.

In time, he finished, and he walked back to camp, leaving his hole saliva free. He walked in a dream like state, looking past camp. His thoughts lingered back to her. She was running through a maze of alleys, screaming his name. He watched as she struggled, her face damp with tears and her eyes wide with fear.

Quickly, he shook his head, chasing away his old dream.

He returned to the tent to find all the guys of D-tent sitting around in a circle, Pendanski sitting with them, nearest to the door. When Zigzag walked in, all looked at him except for Pendanski, who kept his back toward the opening.

"Take a seat, Ricky." He finally said when Zigzag entered his line of sight. Cautiously, he sat on the cot farthest from Pendanski, and scanned the tired and weary faces of his tent mates.

"Now that we're all present, I thought we should take this time we have together to discuss what has recently happened." The doctor said slowly, and when no one interrupted or spoke, he continued. "We all went through a lot in a little bit of time, and I'm sure some of you have questions or comments." No one spoke still. "Anyone like to volunteer to speak first?"

Shyly, Caveman raised his hand halfway up and took a deep breath.

"Yes Stanley?" Pendanski said calmly, and Caveman let his arm fall to his side as he exhaled.

"Why was she even here in the first place?" he asked, the words coming out individually and broken.

"She was involved in a New York shooting. The police caught her along with many others involved. But, as she is a minor, under the Federal Law she couldn't be sent to jail. The authorities thought that the best, most isolated correctional center was here. The Warden agreed to let her in, under special conditions. Anything else you boys want to know?"

This time, it was Squid that raised his hand. He gulped when Pendanski called on him to speak, and he paused for a moment, and then stammered the question.

"W-who is Zac-ck?" he asked, but, this time, it was Pendanski that looked confused.

"What do you mean, Alan?" Squid turned a little pale and muttered something about being sick, and he got up and ran out of the tent, followed by the sound of him retching up his dinner. Since Squid could no longer answer the question, Armpit chimed in.

"Last night," he started and the attention was drawn on him. " She was saying stuff about some guy named Zack."

"What kind of stuff was she saying, Theodore?"

"She kept saying how much she loved him, and how she was going to be with him." Armpit finished, looked down to the ground.

"I don't know anything about her past, but he might have been one of the one's dead in the shooting." Before Pendanski could say anything else, Zigzag spoke up.

"Is she alive?"

Everyone froze; even the air seemed to stop. Squid froze in the doorway, his hand in mid-wipe of his mouth. Zigzag only looked at Pendanski, wondering and fearing what the answer might be. Pendanski, breaking the era of motionless time, took a deep breath and sat back in his chair.

"We don't know." He said truthfully, a sorrowful look on his face. "The last we heard from the hospital was this morning, and that she was unconscious. They've wrapped up her arm and stitched it," He paused, and Squid could be heard running from the tent again. "But they can only wait for her to regain consciousness."

Silence filled the air, spreading like a plague. The boys all had one thought flowing through their minds, and Pendanski seemed to read it off their faces.

"I don't think she'll be returning." He then stood, and was about to leave the tent when the Warden practically ran into the tent, closely followed by Mr. Sir.

"There you are!" she cried, and then her eyes fell on the boys sitting around in a circle, all looking down to the floor. The Warden cleared her throat, but they did not look up.

"Boys, I've got some good news about your little friend." She smiled, a hard thing to come by for the Warden. This caused all of the D-tent boys to look up, all except for Zigzag.

"What?" asked Magnet, excited.

"She's awake."

A/N: Okay, so this chapter was short, but I had to shorten it or else it might have went on forever, plus, this way, there will be more chapter to look forward to, since I'm splitting up the long chapter I was going to write all together. Hope you loved it, and hopefully the next chapter will be up soon. Happy Easter to everyone, this is what the Easter Bunny gives to you from me. Please reveiw and the support of your reveiws may inspire me to write the next chapter soon. Thanks again for reading.


	8. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Yes, I know its been a horribly long time, but here is the next chapter to Indian Rain! Hope you love it!**

Chapter Seven 

Elizabeth's eyes were focused with great determination at the tile under her feet. Her hands gripped the edge of her chair tightly, her wrist, though heavily bandaged, could be seen tensing. Her breath was shallow, but ceased when the door to her room opened, and someone entered.

She didn't move, she didn't breath. Her body was tense, like a tiger about to pounce. But before she could capture her prey, she spoke.

"Good morning Miss Elizabeth." Shivers vibrated down her spine at the name, the voice, but the woman ignored her. "I am Mrs. Duncan. I shall be assisted you in your healing."

"I'm fine." Elizabeth muttered through gritted teeth.

"Apparently your not, or has the chair insulted you?" The sarcasm must have been dripping from the edges of Mrs. Duncan's mouth. Elizabeth let go of the chair and folded her arms instead, though she personally detested the gesture, believing it proved teenage ignorance.

A click echoed through the room as Mrs. Duncan turned on her small tape recorder.

"Tape A110-13-06, Session One." Then she set the tape recorder down on the floor, while seating herself in a folding chair across from Elizabeth's. "Well, Miss Elizabeth? How shall we begin?"

"Begin however you wish Mrs. Duncan, I'm not talking." Elizabeth had taken the sarcasm Mrs. Duncan had delivered and whipped it right back in her face. She looked up at the psychologist, smirking, but Mrs. Duncan did not seem shaken.

"Alrighty then, I just think we'll have to see." She looked down at the clipboard on her lap. "I understand you were involved in a shooting?"

"I wasn't involved." Elizabeth muttered, and then stopped herself. She hadn't meant to respond.

"Ahh, look who's talking?" Mrs. Duncan looked to her patient. "Shame, I thought you'd last longer." There was tense silence, and then Mrs. Duncan continued. "If you weren't involved, then how were you arrested?" There was a beat, and Elizabeth had thought about not responded, but Mrs. Duncan would just annoy her more if she didn't.

"I wasn't involved, I was there." She said, then slowly, looking back to the ground, she added. "I was trying to find someone."

"Whom?" Mrs. Duncan asked, not looked up from her clipboard.

"Zig…. I mean Zack." She blurted out. And then, in a swift movement, smacking her head with her hand, hard. The was a sound of metal scraping tile as Mrs. Duncan had jumped to her seat. Elizabeth looked up, and seen a little concern in the stern woman's face. Mrs. Duncan didn't look like most psychologists Elizabeth had met. She was tall, yet plump. The business-like suit she wore was a beige color that did not fit her pale complexion at all, and her red hair clashed horribly with the bold make-up smeared on her face.

"Let's just calm down." She stated more than said, her voice containing no sympathy. She sat back in her own chair. "Now, who is this Zack? And who is the first one…. um…. Zig?"

But it was too late. Elizabeth was gone. She sat there, hands clutching her arms, her eyes were wide, and she slowly rocked forward and back.

"It's not my fault." She whispered. The words left her mouth, but Mrs. Duncan did not hear them.

"Miss Elizabeth? Please answer the questions." Mrs. Duncan said, unaware of what was going on.

"Its not my fault." She whispered again. Her fingers fidgeted and her eyes darted this way and that along the floor.

"What was that, Miss Elizabeth?" Mrs. Duncan asked, standing up and slowly approaching Elizabeth.

"IT'S NOT MY FAULT!!!" She screamed, and pounced at Mrs. Duncan, who cried out in help as Elizabeth dug her nails into the woman's pudgy face. Elizabeth thrashed out against Mrs. Duncan until the poor woman had fainted from anxiety. Then Elizabeth, realizing her victim's unconsciousness, stood back, and snatched the tape recorder. And then, speaking right into the mike, right before she threw it against the wall, shattering it into a thousand pieces, she said.

"Its not my fault."

**Author's Note: Okay, I know that was a really short chapter, but it was just basically updated you about where Elizabeth is and how her mentality has changed. It's kind of showing you the true Elizabeth, well, maybe. I am working on the next chapter as we speak, or probably as you read. You keep reading and I'll keep writing. **

**MAD4magik**

**Ps: I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed and give a shout out to my friend. So, How's Life?**


	9. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Now, I'm proud. This is the fastest I've updated in a while. Usually it takes me weeks to get around to writing. I'm really focusing on this story and one of my Harry Potter stories, By Any Other Name. So...expect a lot of chapters. Read and reveiw please. And LeMoNsOuR, it was great to hear from you. **

**MAD4magik**

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_Disclaimer: I do not own Holes, that is owned by the awesome Louis Sachar, I only own what is not familiar to you. _

Chapter Eight

Zigzags knees hit the ground after he'd hoisted himself from his finished hole. He was exhausted. Ever since the night when... when Elizabeth had...left, he'd lost sleep. Every night, the second he rested his head on his pillow, he was swallowed up by the night, and thrown into a deep, uneasy sleep. He always had the same nightmare as he had before when Elizab... she had still been here, except they'd changed.

Before his dreams had consisted of him, watching from above as Eliz... she ran through alley after alley, shouting his name. He watched her struggle, shouting all the while, "RICKY! RICKY!" but for some reason, he hadn't answered until he saw her begin to fade, like some kind of darkness was covering her. She had cowered to a corner, a large brick wall blocking her escape, and then suddenly and oddly, she stood, and began to walk toward the blackness. Zigzag had screamed, but she didn't hear him. Then, she started to hesitate, until abruptly she screamed, and Zigzag unknowingly pushed himself through the brick wall that kept them apart and pulled her through just before the darkness engulfed her. She was crying, the tears falling down her face like rain. He reached out his hand for her, and to his surprise, she took it, and wrapped her arms around him, sobbing from fear and relief. Then the picture in his head would begin to fade, and he would wake up, soaking in his own sweat.

But now, the dream had changed. Right after he would pull her away from the darkness, she would collapse onto the ground, muttering to herself as she cried, her arms wrapping herself in a hug. Then, before Zigzag could help her, before he could offer any comfort, another boy appeared. This boy looked strangely similar to Zigzag, but he was shorter and his hair was lighter. He walked right past Zigzag, and gently took her hand. The moment he did, Elizabeth screamed. Her wrist split and blood began to flow. Zigzag tried to get to her, but he ran and ran and just kept moving farther away. She was dying, and the boy wasn't doing anything about it. He was smiling. Zigzag cursed and screamed, but no matter how much he screamed, no one heard him. Finally, Elizabeth's body fell to the ground, and the boy simply walked away. This time, when Zigzag ran, did not move away. He ran straight to her, and fell to his knees as he cradled her bloody and lifeless body in his arms. His face was wet with tears and his clothes drenched with her blood. She was gone, and he didn't save her.

Zigzag shook his head, trying to eliminate her scream from his mind. The nightmare haunted him at night, and voices started to stalk his days. He ran, trying to leave the voice behind. He was parched, he was weak, but he ran fast, his hands forcing hard down on his ears, trying to block out the noise, but it was already in his head.

That very night, Zigzag lay awake, fighting the unconsciousness that threatened to take over him. He couldn't stand it, and he couldn't dream again. This nightmare was too much; he couldn't handle it any more. His eyes began to close, and almost immediately, his hand came up and smacked him in the face. His eyes widened from the slight shock of pain, but then started to close again. Zigzag sat straight up, and started to smack himself continuously. He heard movement around him as his tent mates awoke from the ruckus.

"Zigzag." Armpit said cautiously, "You alright dude?"

Zigzag didn't respond to him. Instead, he plopped back down on his cot, pretending to go to sleep, until his eyes really started to droop, and he abruptly shut up on his cot and smacked himself hard on his cheek. He winced from his own infliction of pain. His whole body seemed to be shutting down from drowsiness. First he back gave way and he fell back onto his cot, and then when he tried to push himself up, his arms went numb. Zigzag lay there helplessly as sleep over took him.

The room seemed to spin as Elizabeth lay, strapped down to a medical examination table. Her eyes focused on the ceiling fan, watching it spin around and around. A nurse who had been injecting a tranquilizer into her said the doctor should be in shortly. It didn't matter, Elizabeth could barely hear the nurse, she could barely hear anything. The pure noise of silence drowned her ears as the tranquilizer took affect, and she feel into unconsciousness.

_In an instant, she found herself running through the desert. Ahead of her, she saw scorching sun and dry land, but what behind her scared her more. She took a quick glance over her shoulder to see a large black cloud, barely feet from engulfing her, spreading the length of the desert. It was gigantic, larger than she'd ever saw. From its very core, thunder roared. She ran with all her might, toward a destination unknown to her. She just ran. _

_The darkness lurched, missing her by merely inches. She tried to run faster, but fatigue and thirst began to plague her. She focused her eyes in the distance, for any sign of shelter, any sign of hope. The black cloud rumbled again, and just before it pounced, Elizabeth's eyes spot someone. She jumped toward them, wrapping her arms around him as the cloud took them over. _

_Blackness surrounded them, ripping, tearing at them. Elizabeth clung to him for dear life, and he held her strongly. Thunder shook them, wind whipped at them, and vision faded slowly. Elizabeth couldn't move, she couldn't cry, and she couldn't scream. Every roll of thunder broke her bones, every whiplash of wind scratched her face, and her eyes were covered in blood. The pain was too much. Her grip began to loosen from him. He tried to grasp at her, tried to save her, but with one surge of wind, she was blown away into oblivion. _

Miles away from each other, Elizabeth and Zigzag woke suddenly, sweating, panting, and scared.

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**Author's Note: Like it? Hate it? Tell me. I know it was short, kind of like the last chapter, but I like suspense, and the plot is thickening. I already am planning the ending in my head, but I know what's going to happen. Pay attention to the dream sequences, they're really important. And I'd like to add one more thing, and only one person reading this will understand. MINE!**

**MAD4magik**


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: ****Holes I do not own. **

**Chapter Nine**

Elizabeth sat, at two o' clock in the morning, watching the rain slide down her window. Few actually hit the window, blocked by the steel bars that completed her prison. A sigh escaped her lips as she thought back, back to the dry sand, the putrid tents, and him.

A tear slid down her cheek as she stared with hate at the bandage around her wrist, holding back the blood she longed to spill. Why had he stopped her? Why did he care?

A flash of lightening drove him out of her mind as she listened lovingly to the thunder. The only time she felt calm was in the midst of a storm, but she could not be with the thunder, bounding the beat that led her heart, for she was held captive by the steel bars, both physically and mentally.

Zack didn't like the rain. He'd never received joy and peace from standing in the pouring rain, arms spread wide, and face to the heavens.

More tears fell as she thought of her beloved Zack. If she hadn't been there…if she hadn't distracted him…maybe he'd be here.

"NO!" she abruptly shouted as she stood from her chair. In three quick steps she was across the room, as far away from the window as she could be. The rain was betraying her, bringing back thoughts which she hoped to forget.

Her hands had unconsciously found their way to her mouth, attempting to silence anymore unexpected noise. If they heard her…

She shivered at the thought. She knew what they were planning. They were going to end her suffering, put her away from this insanity. More tears ran down her pale cheeks as she thought of her fate. Her plan had been to die at her own hands, not to be murdered.

Then she heard the footsteps.

Footsteps cautiously coming toward her door, accompanied by the humming of the night nurse. Elizabeth jolted across the room and cowered under her blankets, willing herself to sleep. But sleep wouldn't come quick enough.

She stared as the doorknob turned slowly, and just as she always did, the night nurse peaked her head in the room. Through the darkness, she could not see Elizabeth lying under her covers, wide-awake. She only saw her lying there, not moving. The humming ceased as she made her way to Elizabeth, who quickly shut her eyes.

Once the night nurse caught sight of her breathing, she turned back to her trolley and began sorting out different medications that were to be injected into Elizabeth. A clap of thunder shocked her, and she jumped, dropping the needle to the cold tile. She chuckled to herself, realizing it was only the storm.

The nurse glanced back at Elizabeth, who still lay "asleep", and continued to walk over to the window and shut the blinds. Elizabeth sat up slowly, and stepped silently from her covers.

A chill surged through her as her bare feet met the tile. The nurse was distracted, and Elizabeth was almost free.

Lightening flashed across the sky as the nurse turned to find the bed empty, and Elizabeth gone.

Stealth was the last thing on her mind after she heard the nurse scream. Elizabeth ran down the all turning this way and that, letting her feet carry her to freedom. Finally, she saw the door, and thrust it open as she welcomed the rain to her skin. Alarms rang through the air, and Elizabeth kept running. She ran to the fence of the Mental Institution and unsteadily climbed it, gripping the metal the best she could as the rain blessed her skin, comforting her anxiety. She couldn't feel anything, not even the barbed wire cutting into her flesh as she jump off the fence, and ran from her prison, beaming from ear to ear.

"What do you mean, 'she's gone'?" The Warden screamed after catching wind of the news. Dr. Pendanski flinched at the tone of her voice, but did not back down completely.

"The hospital called this morning, she escaped. The nurse said one minute she was lying in her bed, sleeping, and the next she was gone."

The Warden jumped from her seat and paced across the room, massaging her temple with her withered hand.

"The police are searching for her, but they don't have a lead." Dr. Pendanski continued, waiting for some kind of verbal response.

"What about her parents? Could she have gone to them?" Mr. Sir suddenly blurted out.

"Impossible, they're dead." Pendanski stated, motioning to his clipboard. The warden let out a sigh.

"Well, what do they plan to do when they find her?" She asked, looking absolutely flustered.

"Send her back. Here, that is." Pendanski said, to which the Warden let out a relieved sigh. "They don't believe she's mentally distraught, considering she was sane enough to run away, but she has been piling up some charges." The Warden looked up, waiting, as Pendanski hastily consulted his clipboard.

"Well…first off she never paid her term for gang violence, plus she attacked her psychologist and is avoiding the police. They'll grant her a mental analysis, but she'll more than likely be returning to Camp Green Lake."

"Good." The Warden stated as she rose from her desk. "We can't afford to lose that state funding."

Pendanski nodded, and excused himself from her presence. Walking out the door, he quickly jumped into the water truck, and drove off before the heat could catch him off guard.

Once night had fallen, she stepped from the safety of the run down home. The rain was falling again, and she smiled as she danced and skipped in the blanket of rain. The air was cold, but she didn't mind. Her body was numb to the cold as long as she focused on the rain. For the first time in what seemed like forever, she was at peace. She didn't think about anything but the rain, each drop kissing her skin with love.

Her walk was clumsy, and her vision was blurred, but the rain healed all her ailments. But her peace wouldn't last forever.

Her eyes snapped open and to attention as wailing sirens reached her ears. They were coming.

Her legs reacted and sprinted into an alley. She ran this way and that, putting as much space between her and the street as she could. She didn't pay attention to where she was running, only paid attention to where she was running from. Until her feet ceased to move, and her knees hit the pavement.

Her eyes came to focus, and her heart stopped as she recognized which alley she was in.

**Author's Note: **CLIFF HANGER!! At least, I hope so. All my faithful and loyal readers probably know which alley she's in, but what will happen next? I'm even excited, and I know what's going to happen. WEEEE!! I love suspense! Please review, and tell me if you like it, or if you hate it. Please, be honest, it really helps.


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Blood, blood everywhere. Blood stained the concrete. Blood stained the walls. All she could see was blood.

Elizabeth stood completely still, her eyes wide and her breath stopped. Her mind turned inside and out as the realization came. She was standing in the dried blood of her beloved Zack.

"Zig-Zag, guess what I heard." X-ray shouted as he approached Zig-Zag lying on his cot. Zig-Zag said nothing, but X-ray continued anyway.

" Dude!!" X-ray waved his hand in front of Zig-Zag's dazed face. Zig-Zag pushed away his hand, muttering "What?"

"Elizabeth is coming back." X-ray said, a sly smile on his face. Zig-Zag sat up suddenly.

"What?!" He exclaimed.

"Ya, that's good news right?" X-ray asked, but then his smile faded. "Well…she MIGHT be coming back."

"What do you mean?"

"The cops gotta find her first."

Zig-Zag stood now, his height causing him to tower over X-ray. Zig-Zag snatched X-ray by the collar, and pulled him up to eye level.

"What…happened?" he hissed through gritted teeth.

"Chill man! She ran away, no big deal, they've got tons of cops trailing her."

Zig-Zag dropped X-ray and ran from the tent. X-ray yelled something after him, but to Zig-Zag it was not important. Nothing was more important right now than finding her.

"Zack" she whispered as her knees collapsed. She slowly touched the stained ground with her pale hand. Her body was shaking, finally recognizing the cold. The rain no longer felt pleasant, it felt like bullets. Each individual drop piercing not her skin, but her heart.

A strong gust of wind blew, carry the sound of the approaching sirens with it, but she could not move. Her heart seemed to have stopped beating and her breath wouldn't come. His blood, his blood was on her hands. It was her fault. It was all her fault.

Thunder rang through her ears, lightening spread light on the dark alley. Then came the tears. Elizabeth crumbled onto the ground, curled up on the death spot of her love, tears streaming from her eyes. She banged her fists on the cement, she felt the bang but she didn't care, she wanted him back.

Elizabeth paused, trying to catch her breath. She just curled up, trying to cuddle against the ground. It was then she noticed the silence.

The sirens were no longer blaring, the thunder was not rolling, and though she could see the rain hitting the ground, she could not hear it. Before she knew it, she couldn't' feel the rain or the ground. The cold was the only thing she could feel. Cold ice filtered through her body, soul, and heart. The ground was moving, blackness taking its place. The blackness was swallowing her whole.

Fright filled her mind, and she rose to her feet to run, but a hand reached out and grabbed her arm. She looked from the hand to its owner, and fright seemed to leave her as she stared unbelievably into the face of her beloved, her one and only Zack.

"Come Elizabeth, don't be afraid." He said smoothly, pulling her deeper into the blackness. She wanted to go, wanted to follow, but her feet refused to move.

"Zack, please, I'm stuck!" She cried, but he was leaving, he was leaving her, trapped in the darkness.

Zig-Zag lay on his cot for the second time that day. He was disappointed, disappointed in himself for not succeeding. The Warden wouldn't listen, neither would Dr. Pendanski, and there was no point in talking to Mr. Sir.

He wouldn't sleep, its not that he couldn't, but he was afraid. These dreams were getting more real and more frightening. What if he dreamt something horrible, and it happened!

His eyes wandered around tent, begging for something to keep him awake, searching for anything to keep him from his dreams. Though, even if he was not dreaming, he couldn't stop thinking about her, wondering through the streets of New York alone. And him, half way across the country, knowing he was useless.

Zig-Zag slowly turned over, facing the wall, trying to make himself extremely uncomfortable, but nothing worked. His body adapted to every position he tossed or turned into to. His eyes began to droop, his body would not move at his mind's command, and he drifted off into the world he'd been trying so hard to avoid.

The dream began strangely though. Most of these dreams began with him running through alleys, chasing something that turned out to be Elizabeth, or watching her run, but this time it began still, cold, and sudden. The moment he entered his dream, he found himself standing in a blood stained alley, standing over Elizabeth's pale body.

Zig-Zag woke suddenly, jumped out of bed, and ran from the tent. He ran to the Warden's house, not caring if she didn't listen before, he was going to try once more. Once he reached the house, he didn't bother knocking. He threw open the door, jumped over the threshold. The Warden must have heard the chaos, for before he reached where he suspected was he room, she appeared in the hallway, wrapping a robe around her nightgown.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU-"

"We have to get to New York, I have to find her!!" He said, calmer than he'd thought he would. The Warden looked at him strangely, and then realized what he meant.

"Calm down, the police are looking for her, she's going to be fine!"

"No she's NOT!" he said, his voice rising.

"And what makes you-"

"SHE'S DYING!!"

**Author's Note: **Next chapter already started, in my head. Hope this keeps you interested! I also want everyone to know, I'm not adding another chapter until I get some reveiws! So far I've only gotten one, if you want to find out what happens, REVEIW!! If I don't get reveiws, I'll think no one likes it and I won't update. Thanks!


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven 

Zigzag's words caught the Warden in complete shock. She froze in mid sentence and just stood there, wide-eyed and silent. Until finally she laughed.

Laughed! Zigzag could not believe that she was laughing!

"Oh, and how on Earth do you know this?" she asked, with an evil grin on her worn face.

Now Zigzag froze. How did he know? After all, it might have just been a dream. Elizabeth could be fine, already in the custody of the police.

But no! It was so real. Her, lying on the cold concrete, and he could feel her fading away, the cold taking over her mind and body.

He gulped and finally said through gritted teeth.

"I just…do."

"Zack!! ZACK!! Please, COME BACK!!" Elizabeth screamed toward the dark walls that surrounded her. Her mind was spinning, searching desperately, looking for any sign of him, but she seen nothing.

Tears flowed from her eyes as she desperately tried to move, but her legs would not carry her, her arms would not move her, she was trapped, trapped and alone.

She let go, finally she gave up her fight, curling up on the cold cement, she closed her eyes and cried as her nightmares drew closer and closer…

"WE HAVE TO SAVE HER!!" Zigzag yelled, trying to quickly persuade the Warden to act, but she would not budge.

"And what do you expect _me _to do!? Hop on a plane to 'save' her?" She chuckled at the thought. "Even if I cared enough to do that, it would take hours to get to New York. Plus, how am I supposed to trust you? You could be making all this up!"

"BUT I'M NOT!!" Zigzag was frustrated, tired, and scared for not his life, but hers. "I saw her dying!! COME ON!!" He turned toward the door, but the Warden did not move.

"Saw her? How?"

He stopped and without turning to look at her, said. "In a dream."

"_What?_"

Zigzag turned on the spot to see the Warden looking livid. Her cheeks were blazing red and her teeth were clenched.

"YOU BARGED INTO _MY _CABIN!! WOKE _ME _UP AT UNGODLY HOURS OF THE MORNING, YELL AT _ME _TO SAVE YOUR PATHETIC GIRLFRIEND ALL BECAUSE YOU SEEN IT IN YOUR DREAMS?!?! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, A FUCKING PSYCHIC?!?!?"

Zigzag snapped.

Before the Warden could register what was happening, Zigzag punched her across the face. She tumbled to the ground, screaming. The commotion woke Mr. Sir and Dr. Pendanski, who came running in. Zigzag, realizing what he'd done, sprinted past the two men and ran through the door. Mr. Sir chased Zigzag outside with Dr. Pendanski at his heels.

Boys from all tents were coming out to figure out where all the noise was coming from. Once their tired eyes configured the commotion, they began to cheer. Mr. Sir yelled for Zigzag to stop, and he did, tripped Mr. Sir as he turned. Mr. Sir's gun flew from his hand and landed yards away.

A brilliant idea struck Zigzag. He planted a foot in Mr. Sir's face and ran toward the abandoned weapon, snatching it up and turning it upon its owner.

The entire camp went silent. Dr. Pendanski froze where he stood, and the campers stopped their jubilant cheers. Mr. Sir looked up, and in realizing his current situation, his already blackening eyes widened in fear.

"Get me to New York, or I shoot."

"Zigzag" Dr. Pendanski said gently. "Let's calm down. I think you're over-reacting."

"SHE'S DYING!! SHE'S DYING IN NEW YORK!!" He screamed at Dr. Pendanski, keeping the gun pointed straight at Mr. Sir's face.

From far away, Zigzag heard a loud bang. Shortly after, he felt a sharp pain in his back. And he felt himself falling away as the world went dark.

He felt himself floating, as though effortlessly swimming through a sea of darkness. He could hear voices around him, vague unfamiliar voices, but he ignored them. His body was heading toward a light, blood red in color, and slowly becoming darker.

Before he knew it, he had emerged through to the other side. He was standing in the alley, and joy filled him only for a moment, he looked down to see her, curled on the ground, her blood pouring over the cold cement.

Who did this? Anger and pain filled every inch in his body as he looked up to see a young man standing on the other side of Elizabeth. Zigzag felt like he was looking in a mirror. The guy looked just about the same as he did, but was wearing urban clothes instead of Zigzag's orange jumpsuit. Then, Zigzag looked at his "twin's" hand to see a bloody knife.

Suddenly, the murderer looked up at Zigzag, noticing he was there. A sick smile spread across Zack's face as he nodded toward the ground.

"You're too late buddy."

A violent scream erupted from Zigzag as he charged the image of Zack, but he passed right through him. Zack turned and within a moment he was standing directly in front of the fallen Zigzag.

"You're not dead Ricky. Yet." Zack laughed heartlessly.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?"

"Dead, Ricky, but not settled yet." He paused for a moment and nodded back toward Elizabeth's bleeding form. "You see, I had some unsettled business to attend to. Elizabeth betrayed me when she went to Camp Green Lake and met you."

"But you were dead!" Zigzag said, trying hard to get up to save Elizabeth.

"Oh Ricky, so naïve. The dead never truly die." He chuckled. "The way you reached out to Elizabeth when she tried to remain so isolated meant something. You went out of your way to try and help her. In result, her heart began to fall for you."

"What does this have to do with you?" Zigzag tried to move his head, his legs, anything, but he was stuck, helpless.

"What doesn't it have to do with me? As she began to fall for you, she started to forget me, a thing she promised never to do. She told me the day before the shooting that she would never, NEVER forget me." He chuckled and turned to look at her. "Now she'll never get the chance."

"AHHHH!!"

Zigzag broke through whatever invisible force was holding him back and ran through Zack and to Elizabeth. He fell to his knees and tried to pick her up, to carry her away to safety, but his arm went right through her.

"You're not really here Ricky, your just here in her mind, your mind. There's some bond between you two, but no matter, that'll end soon."

Hot tears ran down his face as he tried to touch her face, but couldn't. How could he feel so strong for someone he barely knew? He watched her chest rise slowly, her breaths short and slowing fast. His eyes caught the source of her pain, a thin cut on the back of her left hand.

He was losing her slowly, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Moonbeams shined down sadly on the horrible scene. Zigzag, kneeling before Elizabeth's fading body, while Zack snickered cynically from a short distance. The light bounced off both the tears from Zigzag's eyes and the bloody weapon held by Zack. With a scoff, he kicked off the alley wall and started told Zigzag.

"You're weird you know." He hissed, stopping right behind Zigzag, staring down at Elizabeth. "You barely know her, why do you care?"

Zigzag bit his lip and refused to answer. In all honesty, he didn't know _why_ he cared, and to him it didn't matter. All that did matter was the fact that he did care, and whether she cared for him or not didn't matter; he wanted her to be okay.

"ANSWER ME!"

Wind blew through the alley, wiping tears right off Zigzag's cheeks. The wind died and Zigzag barely turned his head toward the ghostly figure.

"What would _you _know about caring?"

He heard Zack's laugh, and then heard him slither back to the wall.

"Doesn't matter, I'll just wait here and watch you both suffer."

Silence settled as Elizabeth's breaths descended slowly. Zigzag reached out to touch her pale face, and was surprised when his fingers went past her skin. He felt a rushing sensation, a magnetic feeling pulling him closer to Elizabeth. He pulled his hand back, afraid, but then, an insane idea struck him, and he slowly, as not to possibly hurt her, abandoned himself to the sensation.

The world around him began to spin. He wasn't moving toward her, she had disappeared. He panicked, thinking she was gone. The world around him was fading to black, and he could hear Zack screaming in the background. He closed his eyes, hoping it would all stop and he would find her.

It did. The spinning stopped, and trembling, he opened his eyes to find himself surrounded by nothing. Every way he looked, if he was really looking a different way, was darker than star-less night. He shut his eyes again, trying to find his body in the blackness. Once he could feel his legs, he tried to stand. The first time he fell back to the darkness, but the second time he stood. He got his balance, and opening his eyes, he ran. Ran as fast as he could in whatever direction he could. He had to find her, she was here, he knew it.

He feet found something, and he fell back to the darkness. Quickly, he turned, squinting through the darkness, but he didn't need to. For at his feet, glowing feebly was Elizabeth.

"How much of that damn stuff did you shoot him with?"

The Warden paced around her cabin as Zigzag lay knocked out cold on the floor. Dr. Pendanski stood on the other side of the room, holding a tranquilizer gun in his hand, inspecting the inscriptions on its side.

"I don't know, it doesn't say! I only shot him once! He should have woken up by now!" He squeaked, panicked.

"I think he's a faking it." Mr. Sir mumbled, looking Zigzag over quizzically. The warden sighed.

"Whether he's faking it or not, it doesn't matter! Do you know what would happen to us if the state finds out we possibly overdosed a juvenile? Instead of running the jail, we'll _be_ in jail!"

"Stay calm!" Pendanski said, shaking. "There's no proof yet! I only shot him once, at least, that's the story we're keeping to."

Both Mr. Sir and the warden turned to glare at him.

"_What?"_ the warden hissed.

"Well…I-I don't exact-t-ly r-r-remember…" He stuttered, fumbling with the tranquilizer. He yelped as Mr. Sir dived at him and grabbed him by his shirt collar.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T REMEMBER?!?!" Mr. Sir yelled, shaking Pendanski until the gun fell out of his hands onto the floor. The vibration from the fall set off the trigger on the tranquilizer, and it shot right into Zigzag's arm.

The cabin fell silent as they stared.

Zigzag, shaking uncontrollably, lifted his hand toward Elizabeth's face. His fingertips brushed her skin. He could feel her. They were real.

He caressed her luminous cheek with his hand, her skin was cold to touch, but he felt warm inside. Just to feel her, to touch her, gave him hope that she was all right.

His eyes welled up with tears, as the memory came back that she was not all right, she was dying. His hand grabbed hers, and he laced his fingers with hers, wanted only to hold to, just to make her passing a bit more peaceful. He knew he couldn't stop it, but he could try to make her happy.

From beneath his hand, he could feel her veins pulsing weakly, trying hard to carry blood from her slowing heart to the rest of her fading body. He looked up to her face, and almost ran when he saw her silver eyes staring back at him.

"Zigzag?"

Her voice was the sweetest music he thought he'd ever hear. Just to know she was alive, he fought to contain himself.

"Elizabeth, I'm here for you. Don't fear."

"You've been invading my dreams."

The words shocked him; they weren't exactly what he had expected to hear, though, to be honest, he hadn't expected anything.

"I-I'm sorry, I haven't been mea-"

She stopped him by clenching his hand tightly, her face twisted in pain. He watched helplessly as she writhed in pain. Slowly she idled again, her eyes holding more pain than seemed possible.

"Zigzag, I don't know how you're here, and I don't know why, but…" she took a deep, painful breath and continued, "I'm glad you are".

And she smiled.

More tears swam down Zigzag's face. He knew what she was saying; she was starting to say good-bye.

"I'm not going to make it Zigzag."

The words stabbed him in the heart. He gulped back a sob.

"No, you are Elizabeth, be strong! I'm here with you, I'll help you."

She twitched again, twisting and screaming from the volts of pain. This time, Zigzag let go of her hand, and wrapped his arms around her. He held her tight, trying gentle to will away the pain, to transfer it to himself, anything but this.

He felt a pain in his gut as he held her, pain quickly racing through his body.

He glanced down to see the knife protruding out of Elizabeth, and into him.


	14. The End

**Chapter Thirteen**

"The only way for him to save her from an eternity alone, was to give up his own life as well. He barely knew her, and she barely knew him, but there was something between them, a bond that will remain forever strong. For no power on Earth or in Heaven above can come between the powers of love and fate."

**Together, at last.**

**Elizabeth **

**And**

**Richard **

"**Quoth the Raven, 'Nevermore'"**

**Author's Note: **It took forever, I know. And just for this little section, I know. But I had lost the password to this account, and in turn abandoned the efforts to this story. It is only recently I have gotten back into this account and read through this story, and thoroughly inspired, I just had to finish it.

It's finished, it's done. The End.

Now Tell me what you thought!


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